Smartphone use during breastfeeding and its impact on mother-infant interaction and maternal responsiveness: Within-subject design.

This study investigated the association between maternal smartphone use during breastfeeding and the quality of mother-infant interactions and maternal visual responsiveness to the infant's bids for attention. We observed 13 mother-infant dyads and video-recorded breastfeeding under the experimental (smartphone use) and control (no smartphone use) conditions on separate days. To evaluate the quality of mother-infant interactions between the two conditions, we used the Japanese revised version of the Assessment of Mother-Infant Sensitivity (AMIS) scale.

Genetic analysis of varicella-zoster virus in the aqueous humor in uveitis with severe hyphema.

Background: Genetic variations have been identified in the genome of varicella-zoster virus (VZV) strains using vesicle fluid, varicella scabs and throat swab samples. We report a rare case of VZV-associated uveitis with severe hyphema, which was immediately diagnosed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using the aqueous humor, in which we were able to analyze the VZV genotype for the first time.

Case Presentation: A 16-year-old Japanese boy was referred to our hospital with a 20-day history of unilateral anterior uveitis and 11-day history of hyphema.

Analysis of human cytomegalovirus replication in primary cultured human corneal endothelial cells.

Background/aims: Since the first case of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-induced corneal endotheliitis in which HCMV DNA was detected from the patient's aqueous humour using PCR, the clinical evidence for HCMV endotheliitis has been accumulating. However, it remains to be confirmed whether HCMV can efficiently replicate in corneal endothelial cells. We, therefore, sought to determine whether primary cultured human corneal endothelial cells (HCECs) could support HCMV replication.

Processing bodies accumulate in human cytomegalovirus-infected cells and do not affect viral replication at high multiplicity of infection.

Translationally silenced mRNAs are recruited to two major classes of RNA granules in the cytoplasm, processing bodies (PBs) and stress granules (SGs). We show that PBs accumulated after human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection. PB assembly after HCMV infection was also detected in the presence of the protein synthesis inhibitor, cycloheximide, but required active RNA synthesis.

Characterisation of cytoplasmic DNA complementary to non-retroviral RNA viruses in human cells.

The synthesis and subsequent genomic integration of DNA that is complementary to the genomes of non-retroviral RNA viruses are rarely observed. However, upon infection of various human cell lines and primary fibroblasts with the vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), we detected DNA complementary to the VSV RNA. The VSV DNA was detected in the cytoplasm as single-stranded DNA fully complementary to the viral mRNA from the poly(A) region to the 7-methyl guanosine cap.

Activated proliferation of B-cell lymphomas/leukemias with the SHP1 gene silencing by aberrant CpG methylation.

Previously we showed reduced protein and mRNA expression of the SHP1 gene in lymphoma/leukemia cell lines and patient specimens by Northern blot, RT-PCR, Western blot, and immunohistochemical analyses. In this study, aberrant methylation in the SHP1 gene promoter was detected in many B-cell leukemia/lymphoma cell lines as well as in patient specimens, including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (methylation frequency 93%), MALT lymphoma (82%), mantle cell lymphoma (75%), plasmacytoma (100%) and follicular lymphoma (96%) by methylation-specific PCR, bisulfite sequencing, and restriction enzyme-mediated PCR analyses. The methylation frequency was significantly higher in high-grade MALT lymphoma cases (100%) than in low-grade MALT lymphoma cases (70%), which correlated well with the frequency of no expression of SHP1 protein in high-grade (80%) and low-grade MALT lymphoma (54%).

Gene silencing of the tyrosine phosphatase SHP1 gene by aberrant methylation in leukemias/lymphomas.

High-frequent silencing of hematopoietic cell-specific protein-tyrosine phosphatase SHP1 gene by promoter methylation was detected in various kinds of leukemias and lymphomas, as well as in many hematopoietic cell lines, which is supported by our previous observation of strong decrease of SHP1 mRNA and protein. The promoter methylation of the SHP1 gene was clearly correlated with the clinical stage. Loss of heterozygosity with microsatellite markers near the SHP1 gene was shown in 79% of informative acute lymphoblastic leukemia cases.

Highly efficient separation of lithium chloride from seawater.

A complexing reagent composed of two bipyridine moieties enabled the efficient separation of lithium chloride through liquid membrane from seawater, in which 0.005% lithium chloride is contained (more than 99% metal chlorides are NaCl, KCl, MgCl2, and CaCl2). That is, two separations by our liquid membrane changed the molar ratio of LiCl from 0.